Strikes on Russian data centers could be as disruptive as attacks on oil refineries, expert says

A data center is a facility containing servers and related equipment that stores data, hosts online services, and helps connect users to internet-based systems. The article describes data centers as supporting internet access, data storage, and hosting. Their importance comes from how many services can depend on the same physical infrastructure.

Yandex operates giant data centers in Russia. They provide dozens or hundreds of services, including systems used by taxis, smart homes, hubs, and payments at cafes. If the servers or connections supporting those services are damaged, users may suddenly lose access to many everyday tools.

The article does not give a technical inventory of every data-center function. It does show that these facilities are central to modern digital life. Russia’s concentrated system makes individual facilities especially important, while Ukraine’s more distributed system limits the effects when one site is hit.

The article estimates that Russia has about 230–240 data centers, while Ukraine has roughly 50–60. In relative terms, Russia has around four to five times as many. These figures describe the number of data centers, not the total number of servers or the capacity of every facility.

The comparison matters because the two countries organize their digital infrastructure differently. Ukraine’s system is described as decentralized and distributed. Russia’s system is more centralized, with very large facilities supporting many services. Therefore, a smaller network can still be more resilient if its services are spread across locations.

Kostiantyn Korsun called Russian data centers a promising alternative target if strikes on oil refineries and energy infrastructure are restricted by an “energy truce.” He said a successful strike on Russia’s last major data center, in Mytishchi, could cause disruptions lasting months.

Yandex data centers are unusually important because they host or support many services at the same time. The article says Yandex facilities are giants, offering dozens and hundreds of different services. A strike can therefore create a chain reaction across daily life rather than affecting only one website.

For example, the article reports complaints about taxis, smart homes, hubs, and payments at cafes. These services rely on shared digital infrastructure to process requests, connect users, and run their systems. If that infrastructure becomes unavailable, a taxi booking may fail, a smart-home service may stop responding, or a card payment may not work.

The broader risk is economic. Fewer people may reach work, drivers may lose income, and tax revenues may fall. If bank processing also stops, the disruption could become a shock-level event and potentially trigger a banking panic.

The key difference is concentration. In Russia, internet access, hosting, and data storage are highly centralized, and giant Yandex facilities support many services. When one important site is damaged, numerous businesses and users can lose access simultaneously. The same strike therefore produces wider effects.

Ukraine’s infrastructure is described as decentralized and distributed. Korsun said that when Ukrainian data centers were hit, most users barely noticed. The main people affected were resource owners who had failed to make backups. In Russia, by contrast, users complained that taxis, smart homes, hubs, and café payments were not working.

This does not mean every Russian service fails after every strike. It means the architecture creates greater dependence on a small number of major facilities. Russian companies are now trying to move important services elsewhere, but the article says relocation cannot happen quickly because available servers are scarce worldwide.

Yandex operates some of Russia’s largest data centers and has virtually monopolized the country’s data-center market, according to Korsun. Its facilities support dozens and hundreds of services. That gives Yandex an important role in consumer services and in the broader digital infrastructure businesses depend on.

The article specifically identifies Yandex as a major provider for the corporate sector, including banks. Banks need infrastructure to run their processing systems. Without that infrastructure, a bank may be unable to operate, and card payments may stop. The same dependence helps explain disruptions to taxis, smart homes, hubs, and café payments.

Korsun described such failures as “shock-level developments.” He warned that a major internet-infrastructure disruption could cause people to withdraw deposits and convert money to cash. That rush could become a banking panic and, in his view, potentially lead to the collapse of Russia’s banking system.

After a data center is damaged, companies can protect continuity by restoring data from backups, using other facilities, or moving services to available servers. Backups reduce the risk of permanent data loss. Spare capacity elsewhere can keep important systems operating while repairs or relocation take place.

The article says Russian businesses are trying to save widely used services by moving them to other data-center facilities. They are searching for any available servers. This process depends on having functioning backup copies, compatible infrastructure, and enough capacity to handle the relocated workloads. Owners without backups are especially vulnerable.

The immediate obstacle is speed and availability. Korsun said moving services cannot be done quickly because there is a global shortage of servers. If Ukrainian strikes continue at the current pace, scale, and effectiveness, he believes Russian businesses could begin to collapse. The article presents relocation as possible, but difficult and incomplete.

Internet networks connect people and businesses to services hosted in data centers. Those centers store data and provide the computing infrastructure behind online systems. Banks also need infrastructure to run processing systems, so digital connectivity and server capacity support everyday economic activity. The article shows how tightly these parts can depend on one another.

If a central data center fails, users may lose taxi access, smart-home controls, hubs, or café payments. If bank processing cannot run, card payments stop. Fewer people may reach work, drivers may lose income, and economic activity and tax revenues may decline. A disruption to services can therefore spread beyond technology into the wider economy.

Russia’s centralized model magnifies this chain reaction. Ukraine’s distributed model has limited previous effects on most users. Korsun warned that a major infrastructure disruption could prompt deposit withdrawals, a banking panic, and possibly the collapse of Russia’s banking system.